Russian shrapnel was raining over the German trenches.

"Finally came the Russian order to advance. At the word hundreds of
yards of the Russian fighting line leaped, forward, deployed in open
order, and came on. Some of them came into range of the German trench
fire almost at once. These lines began to wilt and thin out.

MEN PAUSE ONLY TO FIRE

"But on they came, all along the line, protected and unprotected alike,
rushing forward with a yell, pausing, firing, and advancing again.

"From the outset of the advance the German artillery, ignoring for the
moment the Russian artillery action, began shelling the onrushing mass
with wonderfully timed shrapnel, which burst low over the advancing
lines and tore sickening gaps.

"But the Russian line never stopped. For the third time in two days
they came tearing on, with no indication of having been affected by the
terrible consequences of the two previous charges. As a spectacle the
whole thing was maddening.

"On came the Slav swarm, into the range of the German trenches, with
wild yells and never a waver. Russian battle flags--the first I had
seen--appeared in the front of the charging ranks. The advance line
thinned and the second line moved up.

"Nearer and nearer they swept toward the German positions. And then came
a new sight. A few seconds later came a new sound. First I saw a sudden,
almost grotesque melting of the advancing line. It was different from
anything that had taken place before. The men literally went down like
dominoes in a row. Those who kept their feet were hurled back as though
by a terrible gust of wind. Almost in the second that I pondered,
puzzled, the staccato rattle of machine guns reached us. My ear answered
the query of my eye.

MACHINE GUN FIRE TELLS

"For the first time the advancing line hesitated, apparently bewildered.
Mounted officers dashed along the line, urging the men forward. Horses
fell with the men. I saw a dozen riderless horses dashing madly through
the lines, adding a new terror. Another horse was obviously running away
with his officer rider. The crucial period for the section of the charge
on which I had riveted my attention probably lasted less than a minute.
To my throbbing brain it seemed an hour. Then, with the withering fire
raking them even as they faltered, the lines broke. Panic ensued. It was
every man for himself. The entire Russian charge turned and went tearing
back to cover and the shelter of the Russian